Trayvon Martin case: Sanford police chief quits, is called 'scapegoat'

LATimes ^ | April 23, 2012 | Michael Muskal

[maggief]

Bill Lee Jr., who had stepped aside as Sanford, Fla.'s police chief during the investigation of the shooting of unarmed African American teenager Trayvon Martin, has officially resigned as the community’s top cop, a city commissioner said Monday.

Commissioner Patty Mahany said the chief submitted his resignation over the weekend; Lee temporarily left his post last month amid complaints about how his department handled the investigation of the Feb. 26 shooting. The city commission is scheduled to hold a special meeting late Monday afternoon to discuss Lee's severance package, Mahany said.

"Elected officials used this man as a scapegoat to heal our community," she said in a telephone interview with the Los Angeles Times. "Our community was never broken."

Mahany, who had supported Lee during the political furor over his department’s investigation, called the resignation a "terrible tragedy." She said she blamed civil rights activists whose protests "ruined the reputation and career of a really stellar law enforcement officer."

Lee "is nothing but a scapegoat," Mahany said. "Our police department did nothing wrong."

[nolongerademocrat]

He’ll be replaced by the Black acting-chief?

[Lurker]

He’ll be replaced by the Black acting-chief?

One who would look like Obama's son, if his son had a dog and was hungry. The son, not the dog.

[maggief]

Probably, that’s ‘diversity’ for you.

[nolongerademocrat]

But of course, it is as it should be in Obamaworld. I wish someone could photoshop Obama’s face onto Agent Smith’s body and Mitt’s face onto Neo’s body so that we could vicariously enjoy an epic ass-kicking.

[samtheman]

The power of the mob.

[Nervous Tick]

City manager is black, I see.

I wonder if Ms. Mahoney is a lone voice of reason, or if she has others on her side. The article doesn’t say.

[maggief]

Let’s see how long Patty Mahany keeps her job.

[shadeaud]

Remember the ‘’top cop’’ from the case where two black guys( one was 17 and the other was in his 40’s) the kid would use a rifle to shoot at people from a hole in the trunk.( wish I could remember the names on the case). I can see a cop like taking over in Sanford.

[hoosiermama]

Hope he has another job lined up: Better pay. Supportive staff.
County needs to hire a completely different chief with NO previous connections to anyone in the community.

[reagandemocrat]

Hell, from the very beginning, Eric Holder’s “peacekeepers” beat him like a rented mule:

“The peacekeepers have a specific mandate outlined in the 1964 Civil Rights Act to go into conflict zones within American communities that perceive discrimination or feel wronged because of their particular race, color or national origin.

“We are unique in that we don’t investigate or prosecute but foster communication between communities,” said acting Community Relations Service director Becky Monroe. “The real goal is to build local capacity to deal with these issues.”

They negotiate, ameliorate and communicate “under strict confidentiality,” Monroe said.

City officials said when battle lines were drawn and dialogue broke down, they called in the conciliators.

“They work behind the scenes and in the trenches to make contact with the various organizations that are represented,” Sanford’s Community Development coordinator Andrew Thomas said. “They make the connections others in the community can’t.”

They helped set up a meeting between the local NAACP and elected officials that led to the temporary resignation of police Chief Bill Lee, said Turner Clayton, Seminole County chapter president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.”

[rbg81]

No doubt many on the Left believe his “error” was not immediately stringing Zimmerman up by a rope.

[Moonman62]

Charles Moose. According to Wiki he's available. He apparently went back to ordinary cop in Hawaii, and lost that job.

[Gator113]

Your wish is my command.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beltway_sniper_attacks

[70th Division]

That would be the D.C.Beltway sniper case with Charles Moose, Montgomery County Police Chief. Dump as a stump!

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

Obama won’t go hungry, so long as he owns a dog.

[tumblindice]

She said she blamed civil rights activists whose protests “ruined the reputation and career of a really stellar law enforcement officer.”

Yep, National community organizer Brak “The Cat in the Hat” Obama (AKA etc. and so on) and his Thing One and Thing Two reverend cronies.

[kcvl]

District 4 Commissioner - Patty Mahany - more guts than most politicians!

http://www.sanfordfl.gov/investigation/docs/Zimmerman_Martin_shooting.pdf

Why did Mr. Zimmerman have a firearm in his possession while acting in the role of a neighborhood watch member?

Mr. Zimmerman holds a concealed weapon permit issued from the State of Florida. He is authorized to carry the weapon in a concealed manner wherever Florida Statute dictates. Neighborhood Watch programs are designed for members of a neighborhood to be “eyes and ears” for police and to watch out for their neighbors. They are not members of the Police Department nor are they vigilantes. Training provided by law enforcement agencies to Neighborhood Watch organizations stresses non-contact surveillance of suspicious situations and notifying police of those situations so that law enforcement can respond and take control of the situation.

Mr. Zimmerman was not acting outside the legal boundaries of Florida Statute by carrying his weapon when this incident occurred. He was in fact on a personal errand in his vehicle when he observed Mr. Martin in the community and called the Sanford Police Department.

[kcvl]

News of Lee’s resignation came just hours after Zimmerman, who was charged with second-degree murder earlier this month, was released from jail on a $150,000 bond.

According to a press release from the city, the chief’s resignation would take effect at midnight if commissioners, in a special meeting at 4pm, approve a separation agreement tendered by the chief.

“The city has experienced great turmoil in the past two months and we are hoping to stabilise the department and continue with this time of healing,” City manager Norton Bonaparte said, in a statement.

Captain Darren Scott, who has been serving as acting police chief, will continue in that role while the city continues its search for a replacement, the release said.

When contacted by the Guardian on Monday, the Sanford police department was not immediately available for comment.

Lee’s decision came as George Zimmerman’s lawyer said sorry for the surprise apology his client offered to Trayvon Martin’s parents during his bail bond hearing last Friday.

Mark O’Mara told CBS This Morning that if he had known the apology would upset Martin’s family, he would not have allowed Zimmerman to do it.

“We had reached out to see if we could do it privately,” O’Mara said on Monday. But he said he had been unaware of the family’s response to his request.

O’Mara dismissed the claim that Zimmerman’s comments were aimed at the judge in order to influence the bond hearing. He said he would have advised his client differently had he been aware of the family’s response, which he said wasn’t communicated to him.

He said: “I didn’t realise that the way [Martin’s family] had responded to me was through a press conference where they said it was too late or not an appropriate time.

“To be honest, had I known that – maybe had I seen the press conference – I’m not sure that we would have done it at the bond hearing, because the purpose of it truly was to get to the family and to respond directly to the family’s request. Had I known or been told that that wasn’t the time, it wouldn’t have happened. So I apologise for that.”

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/23/trayvon-martin-sanford-bill-lee?newsfeed=true

[GladesGuru]

He’ll be replaced by the Black acting-chief?

A “usually reliable Lamestream Media source” thinks Sharpton, Jackson, NAACP, ad nauseam - all of the ‘usual suspects’ will issue a demand that Sanford hire General “Buck Naked”.

Google the name if you laughed, ‘cause he lives.